Venkatesh, N. orcid.org/0000-0002-6984-3001 (2025) Utilitarianism is a form of egalitarianism. Ergo an Open Access Journal of Philosophy, 12. 27. ISSN 2330-4014
Abstract
Utilitarianism is often contrasted with egalitarianism, and sometimes rejected for its alleged neglect of egalitarian concerns. Utilitarians, it appears, do not care who gets what or how we relate to one another, so long as overall well-being is maximized. Egalitarians, on the other hand, prefer social arrangements in which the degree to which some have more than others, or that some are placed above others, is less. I argue, however, that utilitarianism should be considered an egalitarian theory. Real-world egalitarian movements aim to reduce inequalities in wealth and hierarchical social relations. Utilitarianism, I argue, shares these aims, and does so in similar way to contemporary egalitarian theories. If I am right, utilitarianism should not be rejected for failing to be egalitarian, but engaged with as an egalitarian theory—and utilitarians should take egalitarian concerns seriously.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2025 The Author(s). This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the CC-BY-NC-ND licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/). |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Arts and Humanities (Sheffield) > School of History, Philosophy and Digital Humanities |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Sheffield |
Date Deposited: | 28 May 2025 11:42 |
Last Modified: | 28 May 2025 11:42 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | University of Michigan Library |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.3998/ergo.7658 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:227169 |